


Of Threes and Miracles

by StudioRat



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Alternate Universe - Original, Meta, Multiple Religion & Lore Sources, infodump
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-23
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-02-26 00:20:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 14,285
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StudioRat/pseuds/StudioRat
Summary: Or: So You Read a StudioRat Fic and You Have QuestionsIn no particular order, non-exhaustive, but the first chapter might be an outline, and the chapter titles are going to (attempt) to be self-explanatoryRated T because we might be getting into discussions of grown-up topics in an academic sort of tone.
Comments: 31
Kudos: 19





	1. 0.0 An Index of Sorts

**Author's Note:**

> This is unlikely to be hyperlinked at first, updates will be irregular, things will be out of order, basically you've opened my desk drawer looking for answers and this metafic is justthe papers that fell on the floor in the process.

I’ve gotten some questions over time about my worldbuilding in my ever-increasing pile of Zelda-themed fanfiction. Specifically how I’ve expanded on the (admittedly slim) canon information about the Gerudo. I’ve done a great deal of research on desert and marginal desert cultures for other projects I can’t really talk about here, but the net effect is that Stuff Lives In My Head. I can’t so much point to one prime source or another in the sense of a single cultural moment in a specific place in the real-world as an analogue. I have no intention of doing so either, as I’m writing fantasy rather than historical fiction. My research mostly feeds into plausibility, and backfilling with material that seems to fit a) the canonical context and b) what I want out of the narrative.

A brief note about canon:

I’m primarily interested in canon divergent fic - that is, rather than lifting the characters into a wholly new Alternate Universe or crossover, I’ve stitched together my observations of the games themselves and embroidered upon it. After the release of _Breath of the Wild_ , a whole new library of available flora, fauna, and landscape became available for me to weave in with the rest. 

  1. **Gerudo Society**
    1. [**Gender**](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52306045)
    2. [**names versus Names**](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52306228)
    3. [**Growing Up**](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52306366)
    4. [**Lifepath**](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52306549)
  2. **Gerudo Ranks**
    1. [**Civilian life**](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52306666)
    2. [**Military Life**](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52306789)
    3. [**Spiritual life**](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52306849)
  3. **Kingship among the Gerudo**
    1. [**Becoming King**](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52306921)
    2. [**Being King**](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52307686)
  4. **Hylian Society**
    1. _Gender_
    2. _Naming conventions_
    3. _Growing Up_
    4. _Education_
    5. _Profession_
  5. **Hylian Hierarchy**
    1. _Civilian society_
      1. _Family_
      2. _Land_
      3. _Money_
      4. _Honors_
    2. _Military ranks_
    3. _Religious orders_
      1. _Order of Light_
      2. _Cult of Hylia_
      3. _Circle of Seven_
      4. _Farore_
      5. _Nayru_
      6. _Din_
      7. _Cult of Love_
      8. _Cult of The Hopeless_
  6. **Hylian Monarchy**
    1. Zelda : the Sacred Maiden
    2. The Royal Family : Kings, Queens, Queen Mothers and Prince Consorts
    3. High Council
    4. Council of Ministers
  7. _Language_
    1. _Human languages (living)_
      1. _[Introduction to Contemporary Vernacular Gerudo](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/54860497) (early draft)_
      2. _[Common Gerudo Vocabulary](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/55020169) _
    2. _Human languages (dead)_
    3. _Nonhuman (mortal) languages_
    4. _Immortal languages_
  8. [**Genealogies**](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52308526)
    1. This one will be exciting to format.
    2. And by exciting I mean the other thing
    3. I'm going to revise this to use table format. Until then it's going to stay ugly. Sorry.
  9. _Geography_
  10. _Xenobotany_
  11. _Xenobiology_
  12. Myth and Fable and Legend 
    1. [Golden Tears](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52308814)
    2. [The Mystery of Three](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52308841)
    3. [The Wolf and the Night Goer](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52308925)
    4. The Winter King, Summer Queen, and Spring Knight
    5. [The King and the Wild One, or Avoemayish of Erech](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52308979)
    6. [The Cucco Who Hatched From A Pumpkin](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52323322)
    7. [Exalted the Sun and Exalted the Moon](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52309177)
    8. [The Cucco Who Tried to Hatch a Pumpkin](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52319146)
    9. [The Age of Destiny](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/52309105)
    10. [The Song of Goldtusk](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/53820556)
    11. [The Wise and Wicked Prince](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/63226933)
    12. [The Lady of Flowers and the Green Knight](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/63228595)
  13. Selected Royal Correspondence 
    1. [On Power](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21914317/chapters/63223225)




	2. 01.a : Gerudo Society : Gender

If you’ve read any of my fanworks you might notice before long that “my” Gerudo have a different concept of gender from their Hylian neighbors. I began writing fanworks well before Breath of the Wild was released, so the expansion of Gerudo phrases we have in that era did not influence my minimal use of conlang. (Yes, I am aware of the extensive work on a standard Gerudo conlang [_Va Ehenív_ by Nina-Kristine Johnson](http://va-eheniv.conlang.org/gerudolang1.html) \- I choose not to use it, but if you are interested, go forth and enjoy)

> **Ilmaha - they/them**

Loosely correlates to our designation of nonbinary folk. All children are regarded as nonbinary by default, irrespective of physical characteristics. Some adults remain nonbinary. 

> **Avadha (later evolves to vai) - she/her**

Most adults, widely regarded by outsiders as femme-presenting, though within Gerudo culture this is a wide spectrum. The Most Womanly Women so to speak are the great warriors, the heroines. Strength and cleverness and skill are highly valued. Artisans - especially those engaged in the least strenuous and most decorative arts are considered to be more masculine, for lack of a better word. 

> **Vasajo (later evolves to voe) - he/him**

Strongly identified as male. At this time often denotes the King. Outsiders are allowed to believe that male-bodied persons are rare in Gerudo culture, when in truth it is more that the Trial of the King and the Trial of the Eight isn’t always accessible, and the duties of the King are not something to be shoved on anyone who doesn’t wholeheartedly embrace that life. But that is a Whole Other Story.


	3. 01.b : Gerudo Society : names Versus Names

Children tend to be named for abstract concepts, the wishes of their mothers, the season of their birth - anything, really. These are mostly use-names, often chosen from the Poet's Dialect rather than the common vernacular, and children are not obligated to keep them as their personalities take shape. Most children also earn nicknames, but they are not considered to have a True Name until they are adults. 

Last names are usually a signifier of social function, and almost always are words in the Poet's Dialect. For children, this may be the social function of the mother, or if they are apprenticed, the function of their teacher. Some families pressure their children to follow in their own trade, some don’t.

For the handful of secondary names we encounter:

  * Saiev 
    * a word for swords/blades in the poet's dialect
  * Varcha 
    * a lance
  * Dhana 
    * an arrow
  * Ramal 
    * servant/steward
  * Kharish 
    * literally means a cooking-pot, but in use refers to a skilled chef, brewer, or baker
  * Varan 
    * means "mourning" and is rarely given during Trials, but chosen later, for a long time or a short time, as needed.
  * Davayu 
    * a word for garden, and accordingly signifies people with marked horticultural skill and interest
  * Karsooda 
    * shadow, often taken by scouts
  * Chalut 
    * a complicated word, variously translated as flourishing/blossoming/prosperity. Like Varan, this is rarely received in the Naming Trials. It may indicate either a leader or a blood relative of the same, but is more often used as a descriptor/clarification of a profession-name, or of course, in the ritual salute to the King.
  * Ashak 
    * a healer




	4. 01.c : Gerudo Society : Growing Up

Ilmaha approaching or in the thick of puberty often go into the Sands to seek their Name. For some this is a simple matter of sitting alone in the landscape for a day to think about the Name they will carry, and who they want to be. Others seek assistance from spirits, or undergo specific trials in order to prove their fitness for a certain social function. 

These trials are supervised by adults (although this is a very great secret they all keep from the younger ilmaha), and the Elders do not give permission for an ilmaha to attempt the trials until they agree the child is old enough and well-prepared enough to survive, though there are always a few children who seek their Name without permission. 


	5. 01.d : Gerudo Society : Lifepath

As the guardians of Spirit and direct decendants of the Lady of Sands, the Gerudo consider the nature and progress of the spirit the most important factor in the definition of a person. 

  * Sun-Path 
    * Describes outward-moving pursuits.
    * Examples of professions that might indicate a sun-path person: 
      * warrior, athlete, horse-trainer, actor, witch.
  * Moon-Path 
    * Describes inward-moving pursuits.
    * Examples of professions that might indicate a moon-path person: 
      * servant, artist, dancer, caretaker.
  * Star-Path 
    * Describes spiraling pursuits which require inward and outward, upward and downward movements.
    * Examples of professions that might indicate a star-path person: 
      * scholar, sage, healer




	6. 02.a : Gerudo Ranks : Civilian Life

Any functional society needs civilians. Those who find, grow, harvest, process, and store raw materials into food and shelter and clothing - or coordinate the work of those who do - are immensely valuable to the resource-poor Gerudo. Cleaning is a sub-task, handled by apprentices and masters alike. Often an ilmaha who shows an early talent at these things is gently guided away from martial prowess and their predispositions and interests cultivated. 

Davayu and Kharish and Ramal are some names associated with civilian life, denoting the bearer is devoted to horticulture, culinary arts, or service, respectively. 

In the era of _Ocarina of Time_ and _Majora’s Mask_ , there is not much work for a Gerudo trader, as in the first, the Hylian civil war (Also known as the Unification War) completely disrupted trade and in the both, most outsiders assume they are thieves. 

They’re not _entirely_ wrong: 

All ilmaha are taught how to steal, for survival. Getting caught as a child is a minor infraction, a major one for an adult. Stealing from the communal food storehouses is a much more serious crime than stealing from an individual, and stealing a luxury item is a minor crime compared to stealing food, because it could easily bring famine if the administrators are unable to store enough food to support the various settlements and fortresses. 

Theft of food, livestock, and raw materials from outsiders however, is at this time considered a Good Thing To Do as long as one doesn’t get caught in the process, and one shares their spoils.


	7. 02.b : Gerudo Ranks : Military Life

The army follows the command of the **Exalted** , and the current **chief** or **King** if there is one. In the past, there were two Exalted of equal rank: the **Exalted Sun** and the **Exalted Moon**. However, the enchanted silver gauntlets worn by the Exalted Moon were lost, leaving behind only a legend and the Exalted Sun, roughly equivalent in rank and duties to the Hylian **Lord Marshal**.

Directly under the command of the Exalted are the **Rocs** , each at the head of their own division. Although they are often also skilled warriors, a Roc is primarily a tactician and strategist. A Roc may keep number of advisors and specialists, depending on their status and mission. Some Rocs may merit an Elite guard, but this is rare. Rocs are always elevated in multiples of four, and are roughly equivalent to the Hylian concept of a **General**. In peacetime, there are usually either four or eight confirmed Rocs, each with one or two potential successors shadowing them after they’ve served four years in the position.

Sections within the division are led by warriors chosen from said section by their commanding Roc, and for the duration of their command (or into retirement) are referred to as **First**. Sections are composed of groups of warriors with similar skills and years of service. Each section is subdivided into units of eight warriors with the same specialties. Gerudo warriors are as a rule more independent in their operations than Hylian soldiers, and may fight on horseback or on foot in any given battle. Traditional strategies relied on small units using the harsh landscape of the border country, striking fast and hard, then retreating with whatever they could carry. The evolution of military technology among their neighbors in the protracted Hylian Civil War has rendered these tactics less and less effective over time. Common warrior names are derived from their skillset, such as Saiev to denote a swordswoman, Varcha for a lancer, or Dhana for an archer. 

Varan are, loosely, **guards** , and as such are a subset within the military, answerable to their Roc and a designated local authority. Few Varan are named as such in their Trials, but become Varan later in life. They may retire from active raiding, or they may become Varan because they are in mourning, or they may be civilians who seek refuge in military structure. Some Varan return to their former professions, others transition to new ones, and still others choose to remain Varan for the rest of their lives. The risk and sensitivity of what and where they serve as guard is still determined by their skills as defensive warriors - and the Council opinion of their suitability. Varan in deep mourning are often assigned to non-critical objectives, such as guarding interior storehouses or patrolling gardens for pests and petty thievery.

In this era, the **Elite** are not only a semi-independent group of exceptional warriors answering directly to the ruler, but also exclusively heavy infantry. They wear full plate armor, ride heavy draft horses only to transport themselves to the battlefield, and fight on foot with two-handed weapons. Although they have no direct counterpart in Hylian society, the closest concept is to merge the function of a **royal guard** and a **knightly order**.


	8. 02.c : Gerudo Ranks : Spiritual Life

And here we get to the sticky part. Let us address the structure of spiritual positions within society first, and the religion itself as a separate matter.

**Elders**

The primary governing body of the Gerudo is the council of elders, or elder mothers. There is no formal age requirement for being considered an elder, although only in dire situations will someone under fifty be considered an elder. The only formal rule about how many there might be is that it must be an odd number. Each settlement and fortress has its own loose council, and the high council, when convened, draws from the elders of many settlements, fortresses, and family groups. Small family compounds may only have one woman who is considered an elder, whereas each fortress has a council of seven, plus the highest ranking warrior in residence. Although elders are respected as arbiters of law and advisors to the People, outside an active council session they return to their everyday status. 

**Healers**

Herbalists, surgeons, and assorted practitioners of related healing arts are all considered to be healers, and as such are very high-status individuals. Once they’ve mastered their specialty they are expected to reserve all energy and focus for their craft. Elderly healers teach the ilmaha rudimentary first-aid as a regular matter, and evaluate their charges of interest and aptitude. 

Small raid groups do not take any support staff, but even large groups do not bring master healers into dangerous territory. Full divisions may march with a few apprentice healers, and most section leaders have experience with field medicine and the use of prepared potions and healing charms. Healers may serve on the council or advise it, but rarely are they active in their profession and regularly on the council at the same time.

**Rova**

Like healers, witches are highly specialized, high-status individuals. While expected to have a well-rounded education as ilmaha, students who demonstrate sensitivity to and aptitude for magic undergo additional training in languages, philosophy, history, logic, and what could most closely be described as engineering. Many witches live exceptionally long lives, though the desert-born twins Koume and Kotake are said to be at least four hundred years old. Traditionally, witches and sages would serve complementary roles, with the former focussed on technical mastery, innovation, and preservation of knowledge. Like healers, they may advise or directly be part of the council of Elders.

**Sages**

All sages are to some degree, magegifted, but not all witches are sages. Much like in neighboring countries, the function of a sage is part priest, part mystic, part historian. It is their duty to commune with the spirits and ancestors for the sake of the people, and to guard the sacred places from the irreverent or greedy. However, in the era of Ocarina of Time, the Gerudo people cannot remember the last time they had a sage in the Temple of Sands. Sages do not serve on the council, but may be invited to speak before the council. They operate under a different set of laws than the rest of Gerudo society.

**Chiefs**

Chiefs are semi-hereditary, strongly femme tribal leaders within the context of Gerudo society. That is, they ride, they fight, they run, they climb, they command spirits and natural elements, they are rational and stoic and strong. They preside over the council, and have the power to overrule council decrees - within reason. The council appoints chiefs and confirms their heirs, so a chief who opposes her council too often or over too critical an issue may be deposed and a new dynasty lifted in her place. There are many periods of Gerudo history where tribes organize without a sitting chief, at which times the Council acts as the primary governing body.

The primary function of a chief is to act as a focus, figurehead, and decisive voice representing the People in matters of justice, resource management, war, diplomacy, and trade. A chief who is not felt to accurately voice the needs of the People is rarely chief long, although young chiefs are generally allowed some years to grow into their responsibilities.


	9. 03.a : Kingship Among the Gerudo : Becoming King

**Princes**

Kings are neither hereditary nor chosen by council, although it is common for Kings to emerge from the highest ranks of Gerudo society. He asserts his claim by emerging victorious from a mystical Trial that is said to lay somewhere in the uncharted Sands, to open rarely, and only when there is not a reigning king. Historical records suggest this may occur roughly every century, and accordingly there is a great deal of symbolism of kingship what is associated with the long-lived **Sun Crown plant**. It is against the law to record the mysteries of that Trial, although it is believed that the Trial is different for each prince that emerges with the **ancestral mark** on his skin.

Before a prince can be confirmed as a King, he must undergo a series of additional lesser, secular trials to prove his mastery of each of the Virtues he would rule. When the council of elder mothers agree he has proved his knowledge, and the Exalted Rocs speak also in favor of his endurance, he undergoes the trial for the **Serpent Crown** , sitting as **High Chief** until summer solstice. If he rules a year with the approval of the People _and_ proven fertility, the **high council** accepts him as an avatar of Storm - that is, of **l'voesh tajhli,** the consort of their central deity, **Deasa Ikhusa**.

**Coronation**

In order to be formally crowned as a King, he must also complete the **Trials of Sun, Moon, and Star.** Once crowned, he is considered to have the final say in any civilian, military, diplomatic, or spiritual matters affecting the People as a whole. He is poetically referred to as **The Shuttle and The Blade** , representing his position maintaining balance between the arts of life and death, mercy and justice, creation and destruction.

It is a position of unmatched power within Gerudo society. Deposing a King once he is crowned requires an accord among the Elders and tribal chiefs. However, it is _not_ impossible. If the People have reason to believe he profanes the virtues he is supposed to rule, or has otherwise become corrupted or a danger to the People, he may be **exiled**. It is considered offensive to the gods at best, and likely to be catastrophically perilous to the People to execute one of their chosen representatives, even if they are believed to have fallen out of balance or for whatever cause cannot be allowed to remain in mortal society.

It is commonly believed that exiled princes and Kings may join the ranks of demons.

**Great Kings**

Success in the four cardinal trials renders him eligible to battle the profane beasts: moldorm, molduga, and molgera. Components of each of these are required in order to formally open the **Trial of the Eight**. Details of this Sacred Trial are not known, but it is widely held that the Eight Virtues are involved, as all Kings who survive this Trial emerge with symbols representing each, and frequently tattoos signifying their victories within. 

Great Kings wield a nearly absolute power, and are considered not merely a chosen of gods, nor an avatar of gods, but semi-divine in himself. To oppose a Great King is no longer merely treason, but approaches apostasy. He often listens to the advice of the council, to the tribal chiefs, to the Rocs, but he is not beholden to their recommendations. 

Great Kings are exceptionally rare.


	10. 03.a : Kingship Among the Gerudo : Being King

###  **Crowns and Titles**

A prince is marked apart by a golden circlet with a scarab in flight resting over the brow. With this crown comes the first title of the King: **Flower of Dawn, vo’chalut surai.** The full **Scarab Crown** is mystically bound to the **Trial of Dawn** , and upon the death of a King who conquered that Trial, it leaves the mortal worlds and returns to the Trial. It is widely believed that this is the easiest of the Trials of the Eight.

The **Crown of Dusk** confers the title **Thorn of Dusk**. It is often worn together with other crowns, and is designed to be worn with the hair unbound, or plaited in thousands of tiny **snake braids**. It consists of a net of golden minish-chain, and many delicate oblong plates with paired cabochon gems on each. It is believed that the color of the gems reflects the spirit of the King who wears it.

The **Thunder Crown** confers the title **Lord of Thunder**. It is a relic preserved in the Palace of Fountains. It is constructed in two main parts, linked by enameled chain. The forward piece is an oblong golden plate, with six cabochon gems of sacred bluestone in two columns, each ringed by smaller topaz cabochon. The hair ornament is a golden hoop with eight stylized lightning bolts.

The **Serpent Crown** confers the title **Master of Serpents**. takes the form of a silver cobra descending over the brow of the King, and its eyes and markings are red jasper.

The **Crown of Sands** is an enameled circlet, bearing the pattern of the sacred gods’ teeth. It confers the title, **Commander of Sands**. It is often worn with the hair upswept in a traditional horsetail, and may be worn in combination with other crowns.

The **War Crown** confers the title **Protector of the People** and is only worn when the king is actively engaged in war activities. It consists of a central cabochon mount for his spirit gem, a padded and enameled steel skull plate marked with the sign of the ancestors, gilded steel minish chain with attached combs set with jasper and topaz, and a gilded steel solar disk with eight spear-like rays that secure and are secured by an elaborate twisted coiffure.

The **Crown of Ancestors** is the simplest, consisting of a thin golden circlet and a single four-sided brow ornament. However, this crown is always worn with other regalia and cosmetics that complete the impression that the King himself embodies the sign of the ancestors. According the title conferred by this crown is **Song of Ancestors**.

The **Crown of Ages** is both a title and a minimal, abstract design, worn on the brow without hair ornament, circlet, or chain. It consists of a single cabochon of a flawless topaz, mounted on a carved jade base marked with opposing spirals. Its overall shape loosely resembles antlers.

###  **Regalia**

As a combined secular ruler and avatar of religious significance, the regalia itself conveys the powers and occupations of the King. Like the tribal chiefs, the dominant color in his various garments is **black** \- a color worn by no other Gerudo. Generally, his black clothing is woven or knit from naturally black vicuña and naturally black wool, or of silk and linen dyed with the fermented seeds of the **Sun’s Heart flower**. 

Torn or otherwise outworn black garments may be mended, or remade into other garments or objects for the exclusive use of the Kings. They are _never_ repurposed for any other person. When the King dies, his remaining garments are sorted and either stored for the next King or packed as grave goods.

When the black silk and linen begin to fade, these garments are deconstructed, treated with alchemical agents until the natural deep purple emerges. The resulting cloth is stored for the royal funeral, and may _never_ be used for any other purpose. Kings among the Gerudo never wear purple while they live.

The general cut of the King’s clothing reflects the prevailing fashions of the People, in that his primary garment is the **sirwal**. He wears a tailored **kurta** in place of the breastband, and may wear an open **kaftan** in place of the **mantle**. The cloth and patterns however, diverge wildly. He may wear tone-on-tone black, either plain or made with the pattern of the **labyrinth** or the **spirit fires**. He may wear red, but never plain: it must always be accented with thread-of-gold, and must be worn alone or paired with black(although some records indicate dark blue was once acceptable as well, those accounts date from the **Era of the Wind King** and translation is unreliable). Similarly, he may wear blue only when it is accented with thread-of-silver, and it may only be worn with black. No Kings are recorded to have worn green clothing, though there are many sets of jewels in the **King’s Treasury** enameled in green or set with green garnets or emeralds. 

The one exception to these color pairings is **the sacred cloth** , which in his regalia is always a field of pure white, accented with a single stripe of deep sky blue in a continuous crenel-like shape, and triangular rays of iron-rich earth fitted between each tooth of blue. 

His armor, while still functional as protective garments, is designed to reinforce his distinction from other warriors not merely in color, but in shape as well. It is tightly fitted, and aesthetically emphasizes his physical attributes. It is always made with magical enhancements in the material and decoration.

It is considered blasphemous for a King to dress in the garments or armor of avadha.

###  **Lanterns**

A curiosity of Gerudo culture is the lantern code. The functions of kingship are public matters, yet in practical application, some of his activities necessitate a degree of ritualistic or actual privacy. 

  * **Red lanterns** are associated with **Din** , Lady of Earth and Fire, of Passion and Power. Activities and messages associated with red lanterns are accordingly military in nature: 
    * 1 red = stay alert, orders will be forthcoming
    * 2 red = officers report to war room
    * 3 red = all non-critical units assemble _NOW_
    * 4+ red = All Hands Assemble, armed and dangerous
  * **Blue lanterns** are associated with **Nayru** , Lady of Water and Steel, of Wisdom and Order. Activities and messages associated with blue lanterns are accordingly administrative in nature: 
    * 1 blue = petitions will open soon
    * 2 blue = actively hearing petitions
    * 3 blue = accepted petitions in queue
    * 4+ blue = _PETITIONS IN ACTIVE PROGRESS DO NOT DISTURB_
  * **Green lanterns** are associated with **Farore** , Lady of Wood and Wind, of Life and Courage. Activities and messages associated with green lanterns are accordingly physical in nature: 
    * 1 green = king is in healer-mode, probably in stillroom, available for healing-specific or fertility boosting petitions that can be attended by magic and/or potions
    * 2 green = king is Not Available at This Time As He Is Preparing Himself and/or Various Helpful Items
    * 3 green = did someone say the party was starting I think there might be a solar event of some kind what is a liturgical calendar and do I need one
    * 4+ green = hello I’d like to report the king has had a few to drink, his pants are no longer in the building, and is actively having sexual relations with anyone and everyone who approaches him is this what you call an orgy because I think it might be an orgy
  * **Gold lanterns** , signifying the **Deasa Ikhusa** , Lady of Sands, are not often understood as part of the code, as the King is surrounded by gold lanterns at all times. Or, rather - a _living_ king is surrounded by gold lanterns. When the gold are exchanged for **violet** , the King is dead.



**A Note on Petitions:**

It is beyond the scope of any treatise to explore all possible petitions a King may be expected to hear and either reject or attend, as they are numbered more than the grains of sand in the Sand Sea, or the stars of the Night.


	11. 07.a.1 - Introduction to Contemporary Vernacular Gerudo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (to be expanded later)

Gerudo is largely genderless in the sense that most words in and of themselves have no inherent gender. Nor does Gerudo have articles (the, a). It does however, operate with possessives which _are_ gendered, and the use of them modifies the root word, usually as an affix. However, the possessive itself can - and often is - deleted entirely, and implied through either a proclitic or an enclitic. Curiously, Gerudo has no true first person possessive, word or clitic. It is instead assumed that all speech identifies the speaker as the subject unless otherwise indicated by the use of the third person.


	12. 07.a.2 - Common Gerudo Vocabulary

**Geld'o** |  | **English**  
---|---|---  
ahtu | classical | good  
aieko | classical | come  
amali | classical | mother  
anjusati | poetic | offering  
ansu'raj | classical | a ritual drink of alcoholic spirits distilled from the flowers of the sun-crown plant  
areldi | poetic | center, core, heart. Used in the connotation of the heart of a person or place in the figurative, emotional or spiritual sense  
asali | classical | fondness, heart in the sense of expressed feeling. Not an internal heart, but that which comes from _areldi_  
ashak | poetic | healer  
auru | classical | light  
avadha | classical | sister  
avhaiu | poetic | woman  
baba | classical | father  
balaaqa | classical | meeting  
balaorq | classical | parting  
Bellosa | classical, name | warlike  
Bellum | poetic, name | a demon of war  
Bulliara | modern, name | (she who is) oathbound  
chadali | poetic | moon  
chalut | poetic | flourishing  
chiba | classical | a theoretically healthful drink made with distilled spirits, black tea, souring-root, mint, anise, and other herbs  
cyrba | classical | game  
cyrtia | classical | dancing  
davayu | poetic | growth-tender  
davrosh | poetic | nourish  
Deasa | poetic | Lady (in the sense of a divine feminine)  
dhana | poetic | arrow  
dorf | classical | house  
dorru | classical | night  
dorviru | poetic | dwelling-place  
dosaaba | classical | evening  
dosha | classical | medicinal preparation brewed to encourage increased production of new blood, often administered after mild to moderate blood loss  
dotta | classical | morning  
draigh | poetic | descent, lowering - often used metonymically in reference to sunset or twilight  
dyate | classical | admire, care, respect  
ehv ( suffix 'v) | classical | untranslateable. closest is "my", but functionally asserts possession and responsibility for the modified word and its object, both  
erech | poetic | center, heart in the physical or vital sense. May be used figuratively to denote the core of an idea. Not used in medicine.  
eshalu | poetic | singing  
eshla | poetic | song  
etai | classical | where (is)  
gant'shakroth | classical | layered baked pastries made of layers of thin buttery dough, honey, and crushed nuts in a honey-reduction, and wrapped in more dough  
ganth'raj | classical | King's Honey  
ganthu | classical | honey  
geldanai | poetic | golden  
ghed | poetic | great  
ghurra | classical | horse  
hakoum | classical | fire  
halevi | classical | thin, fried spiral pastries, served dusted with powdered sugar, and served with sweet cream  
han | classical | now  
heiat | poetic | honor, glory  
helmaroc | modern | a leviathan bird of prey, related to the common kargaroc  
i | classical | and  
ibi | classical | brother  
ikhusa | classical | sands  
ilmaha | classical | youth (ungendered)  
Ishet | poetic, name | a snake-limbed thunder-demon residing in the Gerudo Highlands  
jacheli | classical | beloved - romantic sense  
jatheli | classical | love - in the sense of an object (" I love cake")  
jiradai | classical | beloved - fraternal sense  
ka'cyrtia | classical | flower-dancing  
kalu | classical | flower  
kargaroc | modern | a semi-domesticated breed of roc used for hunting and transporting small objects such as messages  
karsooda | poetic | shadows  
kesh | classical | strong  
kharish | poetic | cauldron, specifically one used for cooking food  
komuz | classical | a three-to-five stringed wooden instrument, played variously by plucking, tapping, or rubbing the strings  
kotak | classical | ice  
l'vaisa | classical | Lady (in the sense of a highborn woman)  
l'voesh | classical | Lord (loattah voesh or sovereign-man)  
loattah | poetic | sovereign  
majir | classical | fermented beverage made from figs, low alcohol content  
mesvu | classical | mask  
Murasa | poetic, name | a cat-headed demon or trickster god, patron of cats, children, and lost things  
Nabooru | classical, name | (she) who ascends  
nabori | poetic | rising, ascending  
Naboris | modern, name | climbing one  
oct | classical | eight  
onchali | poetic | exalted  
otena | classical | sunrise  
Rahalin | classical | First (in the sense of rank), officer  
rajena | poetic | Hope, King  
rajenaya | poetic | hopefullness, source of hope  
rajo | classical | hope  
rajolaan | classical | hopeless  
ramal | poetic | steward  
Roc | classical | High ranking Gerudo military leader, roughly equivalent to a general  
roc | classical | a large bird of prey in the corvid family  
rolvaqi | classical | spirit, connotes a dangerous entity, often translated as demon  
rova | classical | witch  
sa'ikhusa | classical | blessed sands  
Sa'oten | modern | Good heavens  
saiev | poetic | swordsworn  
Sarqso | modern | Thank You  
Sav'aaq | modern | Good Day  
Sav'orq | modern | (a common farewell)  
Sav'orr | modern | Good Night  
Sav'otta | modern | Good Morning  
Sav'saaba | modern | Good Evening  
savai | poetic | blessed (though in classical vernacular came to mean "welcome")  
shakrot | classical | cake, pastry  
sirwal | classical | loose, ankle-length fall-front trousers, gathered at the cuff and yoke  
sravoe | poetic | sun  
surai | classical | dawn  
tahjli | poetic | storms  
va | classical | her/hers  
Va'hei | poetic | (a formal greeting for a woman)  
Vaba | modern, classical | Grandmother  
vai | modern | woman  
varan | poetic | mourning  
Vasaaq | modern | (a common greeting)  
vehvi | modern | child  
vo | classical | his  
Vo'hei | poetic | (a formal greeting for a man)  
voe | modern | man  
vure | modern | bird  
yadaj | classical | champion  
zinah | classical | alive


	13. 08.a : Genealogies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This one probably won't work on mobile. idk. I'm trying it.

**Hylians**

Zelda Kaepora. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

~. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

Gustav. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

Harkinian I. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

Daltus. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

~. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

Ambrose Dedrick III. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

Harkinian II. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

Williric Daltus. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

~. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

Harkinian IV. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

~. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

(motherline to be expanded) . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . Hilda (decd) - Nohallan (decd). .. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .|. .. .. .. .. .

Sophia Nichelle Hyrule(decd) - Harkinian Johannes Nohansen Hyrule(decd) . .Sebastian Johannes Nohansen Hyrule. .Beth (decd).

. .. .|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .Mari(decd)

. .. .|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .Holly(decd)

. .. .|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .Ann(decd)

. .. .|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .James(decd)

. .. .|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .Isabel(decd)

. .. .|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .Stephen(decd)

. .. .|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . _unnamed_ (decd)

|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

 **Zelda Sophia Hyrule**. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

* * *

**The Golden People**

Castor - Gustav - Zelda Helena Hyrule

|. .. .. .. .

~. .. .. .. .

|. .. .. .. .

? - Siroc. .. .Gregal - ?. .

|. .. .. .|. .

Strata the Wind King - ?. .

|

Gale. .Capris. .Flurris. .Hailey

|. .|. .. .|. .. .|

?. .?. .. .?. .. .?

|. .|. .. .|. .. .|

~. .~. .. .~. .. .~

|. .. .. .. .. .. .

Astaylu of Ages. .. .. .. .. .

. .

Haedriba of Thunder

. .

Vajun the Enduring

. .. .. .. . **?**. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

. .. .. .. .|. .. .. .. .The Red King. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

. .. .. .. .|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

. .. .. .. .|. .. .. .. .The Gold King. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

. .. .. .. .|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

. .. .. .. .|. .. .. .. .The Green King. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

. .. .. .. .|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

. .. .. .. .|. .. .. .. .The Child King. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

. .. .. .. .|. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .

Koume avadha Rova. .Kotake avadha Rova. .Ishet, demon of thunder - The False Prince - The Forgotten

. .. .. .. .|. .. .. .. .. .|. .. .. .|

. .. .. .. .. .. . **Ganondorf Rajenaya Chalut Dragmire**. .Nabooru Chalut avadha Saiev


	14. 12.a : Golden Tears

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The oldest of all legends, preserved and passed down by holy sages from time immemorial. There are many ways of telling it: this one is sacred to the Guardians of Spirit.

Once upon a time tomorrow, the gods walked among mortals and the world will be rich with powerful spirits. People will worship and serve the gods in all things, for the eternal has always been stronger than the mortal.  
  
It was in that time the eldest goddesses, the Golden Three who divided Thingness from Nothingness, looked upon what they had made, and wept. No two of their children agreed upon the way of things or the shape of the world, and each coveted the power of the others. So and so, they sent their devotees against one another. Lands shaped in beauty became broken, and where life once flourished desolation reigned.  
  
The tears of the Golden Ones become the greatest of gifts; a magic which binds all things, embodies all things, and manifests all things. Forbidden to gods and spirits, dragons and demons, the Three gave this power to mortals alone, if they but possessed the courage, power, and wisdom to seek it. By Their will, whosoever lays their hand upon the Tears may reshape the world to their desire.  
  
So great a gift to the weakest of creatures angered the gods, and they did war over whose devotees should possess it.  
  
It is said some among them defended the wish of the Three, and stood beside mortals against the wrath of the others, though they could never wield the Tears themselves.  
  
It is written that the powers of Chaos so wounded those of Light that they forsook their immortality to give the last of their magic to mortal souls.  
  
It is known that many suffered that we may be free.  
  
And so it is and was and shall be, for history is ever wrought in blood.


	15. 12:b : The Mystery of Three

Once upon a time, two men fell in love with a beautiful woman.

One man was popular and always the center of attention. He was clever and well-read, a master of every art he set his hand to. He was brave beyond measure - there was no daring feat he would not try. He won every contest he engaged, and everyone admired his strength.

But all he cared about was the beautiful woman he had fallen in love with.

Unfortunately for him, the woman only had eyes for the other man. 

Every victory, every skill, every work of his hands he laid at her feet, but her heart remained untouched. 

He pushed himself harder, training long into the night. No man could lift more, run farther, or climb faster than him. Everyone looked at him and said to themselves: he is what a warrior should look like, his feats are those of a hero.

She congratulated his victories with everyone else, but still, she did not see him.

He labored every day to equal her brilliance, challenging himself to solve puzzles to impress her and invent riddles to amuse her, and devour every word of every sage so anything that she wished to know, he could tell her.

She praised his dedication no less than anyone, but still, she could not hear him.

He studied with master artisans of every kind, he learned to sing and dance and paint to bring beauty into her world. He learned to cook every delicacy under the sun and moon and stars to delight her. He gathered wonders from every corner of the world, marvels of art and nature and even spiritual relics. No man could be more accomplished.

She admired his treasures as much as anyone, but still, she could not feel his love.

He grew jealous of the other man, and his despair poisoned every good thing. His pain spread like plague, for he could not find joy in anything she did not accept from him. He turned against the sages whose wisdom she did not want from him, declaring them foolish and worthless. He turned against the masters whose arts she did not want from him, declaring them clumsy and wasteful. He even turned against his friends and comrades who trained beside him, sneering at every imperfection and mocking their efforts as hopeless, for even his unmatched glory was not enough for her.

The only one who resisted the corruption of his bitterness was his rival. He shrugged off every insult, turned away from every underhanded blow, and in every way refused to follow him into malice. Yet he could not be defeated. In the last moment, when all seemed lost for him, the gods’ own blessings would bear him through, and he would triumph.

In secret, the man prayed and cursed and fell ever deeper into despair.

The battle for the woman's love grew and sent sparks hot enough to melt stone.

One day, destiny came for his rival, lifting him up towards a glorious fate. The very heavens confirmed that he would walk beside the woman who loved him until the end of all things. Everyone was amazed, for though he was kind, he had never amounted to much of anything, for he was a dabbler and a dreamer, without discipline. The man railed at the gods, for had he not done everything to be worthy of his beloved? He raised his hand against his rival, but the other bowed his head and begged him for one brief moment to hear the fullness of his duty.

If he laid down the charge the gods designed for him, the woman would surely die. If he accepted it, his path would end in battle under the sword of the Sundering God.

The horror of their peril overwhelmed him. For the first time, the man turned his back on a fight. He could not bear to watch his rival take her away from him forever, but neither could he bear the thought of her pain if the man she loved should die. He wandered senseless through the world, rent to pieces by misery.

He returned to the place he was forbidden to enter, and bowed to the truth that he could never be what his rival was. His surrender transformed him, and when he shed the chains of what he thought he was meant to be, his heart was opened to the promise of what he could become.

Eventually, friendship shone between the men like a light, uniting the pair. It was as if a door had been unlocked. Together they stood with the woman and raised their fists against the rending dark. No pair could be more devoted in their cause, or in the sacred love that grew between the blessed three.

And so it is by the mystery of Three all things flow.


	16. 12.c : The Wolf and the Night Goer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A fragment of Epic Chaos-Era poetry

Swift as thunderbolts, the wolf came at him,  
encouraged, bewitched, hungry.  
The Chosen fell back;  
the night-goer howled.  
He suffered, wrapped in swirling death between them —  
a hero, before, the hope of Light, beloved of the goddesses three, now— a defeated ruin. None came to him, helped him — no brave and noble children of Light revived him; they ran for their lives, fled  
deep into the wild, pursued by the ravening night-goer— for chaos follows upon the heels of Fear, as Hatred follows Greed. Only one remained, stood miserable, remembering, as a good man must, what virtue should mean.


	17. 12.e : Avoemayish of Erech

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> selected excerpts

They pledged eternal friendship,  
the King and the wildborn hero  
Sent by the gods to destroy him.  
All of Erech stared wondering,  
but perfect was their friendship.

* * *

_"The Gods gathered around her,_  
_Angry at my insult to the Goddess,_  
_The Gods agreed that I should die."_  
In tears Avoemayish answered:  
_"O my friend,_  
_My brother,_  
_Why would the Gods punish you and not me?_  
_We have done all things together._  
_Go to sleep brother."_  
But Rinku became very ill,  
Avoemayish paced back and forth,  
Tore out his hair,  
And grieved as his brother died.


	18. 12.f : The Cucco Who Hatched From A Pumpkin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> From _Taryn’s Tales_ , a collection of fables and wondertales for children, mostly originating in Holodrum. Popular as recitations among the middle classes in Hyrule during the reign of Daltus I, and many stories were later adapted into numerous stage-plays and popular borderline-secular paintings. Frequently reprinted with lavish illustrations.
> 
> (actual illustrations forthcoming. In my copious spare time.)

Once upon a time tomorrow, all cucco wore the colors of the forest.

But life was hard in the trees, spending all day hunting for food...

...and all night huddled together against hunters in the night.

So when the Featherless came into the forest and said: _give me your extra eggs, and I will feed you and keep you safe..._

...the wise among them left the forest to live with the Featherless in harmony and plenty.

By and by, the years rolled on, and everyone was happy.

Except for one cucco, because she never had any eggs at all.

All the other cucco had eggs to love and snuggle in their nests...

...which in the spring became fluffy little chicks to follow and talk to them and share their days with.

Everyone said if she waited and was a good little cucco, her egg would finally come to her.

Try as she might to lay an egg of her own, she never could.

She thought eggy thoughts.

She dreamed eggy dreams.

And when she was walking in the gardens of the Featherless, sometimes she thought she saw an egg she could adopt instead -

-but always they belonged to someone else.

Sometimes she even thought she had laid an egg after all, and slept so peacefully, dreaming of all the things they would do together-

-but in the morning, it was always gone.

One night she could bear it no longer. She stood at the door of the coop, and couldn’t move a feather.

To stay with everyone else who had the one thing she wanted more than anything -!

It was too much.

She fled to the forest of her ancestors instead.

Soon enough she was lost...

...and sat under a tree to feel sorry for herself.

_Who disturbs my rest?_ Asked the owl in the tree.

 _I didn’t know anyone lived here,_ said the cucco. _I only sat to rest a moment and cry, because I am alone._

_Everyone is alone, silly cucco. What use is it feeling sad about it? Who are you to argue with the design of the gods?_

...The cucco became angry.

She flew at the owl and beat him about the head saying: _Who are you to speak for the gods?_

_For all you know it could be their will that I have left the safety of the coop to seek my egg. I will find it, and it will be the best egg that ever was._

So and so the cucco left the trees and came to a strange new field full of vines and leaves as big as she was.

She was afraid, but she continued on, thinking of the egg out there waiting for her.

She looked everywhere, and found many things...

..but nothing suited. She would sigh and say to the thing as she left it: " _No, you are lovely, but you are not my egg._ "

On the morning of the fourth day, an amazing thing happened. Under the shadow of a leaf...

...she found the most wonderful egg ever seen.

Big and round and richly colored...

...and all alone. Just like her.

She loved her egg at once, even though it was bigger than any egg she’d ever dreamed of, and had strange grooves and speckles unlike anything she’d ever seen before.

She brushed the frost from its bright shell and tucked it under her heart to keep it warm.

But the year was getting ever colder, and soon the cucco had eaten everything there was to eat near her beloved egg.

She couldn’t bear to leave it, when it was getting bigger and brighter and shinier every day.

Creatures of wind and field and forest came through her field. They urged her to come away with them...

...to fields of never-ending grain before the season of hunger laid its sharp teeth upon the land.

The cucco refused.

She remained with her glorious, enormous egg.

Foxes and wolves and crows came as the vines and leaves turned yellow and then brown, and shriveled away from the cucco and her enormous egg.

They too said she was foolish, and urged her to come down from her perch and come away with them to be warm.

The cucco looked at long fur...

...and their sharp teeth...

...and refused to give up.

When they left, she nudged the bright squeaky shell of her egg with her beak and whispered: " _I will stay with you, darling egg, always and forever._ "

But all the wishing in the world cannot stop the winter winds.

It rained, and it stormed, and it snowed.

The cucco remained.

Cold, and hungry, and alone.

Except for her egg.

Her beautiful, softly spotted, enormous orange egg...

The day came at last, when the grass was all browned and dreaming for winter, and the morning shone bright over the frozen dew...

...the cucco saw a crack in her beloved egg.

She cheered and begged and fretted over it, watching eagerly for another.

Slowly but surely, the crack spread -

and so did the black spots.

But it did not open.

One morning, when she was sure she could bear to wait another day for her long-awaited companion to finish hatching,

a great crack of thunder split open the sky, and lightning struck the frozen field.

The field mice and rabbits fled from the wall of flame,

urging the cucco to come away with them to be safe.

But she could not leave with them. Her beloved egg had split open at last...

...and no companion came out of it.

The owl circled over her as she sat beside the broken shell...

...nudging the golden seeds that were all that were left of her enormous orange egg.

” _Do not sorrow!_ ”, he cried. “ _Take up those seeds to eat and fly away with me, cucco...._

 _...I know the way to your home, and it is surely the hand of the gods that I happened to fly this way._ ”

But the cucco ignored him.

She dug in the dirt, pushing and straining to turn the broken shell of her egg upside down.

The wildfire came so close her tail feathers singed and smoked...

...but she would not give up.

She crawled under the shelter of the heavy, black-spotted shell ...

...she scraped together all the odd little golden teardrop eggs into a pile, and tucked them under her heart to stay warm.

” _Worry not, my darling,_ ” she said to the spirit of her lost egg as she drifted to sleep, exhausted by her efforts.

“ _The gods may have taken you, but I will love your children in your stead, and they will be the best chicks that ever were._ ”

By and by, the fire burned out, as fires often do...

...and The Death of Cucco came to the burned field with the first true snow.

She nudged the snow aside and slipped into the hollow cracked pumpkin shell.

“ _It is time to go home_ ,” she said to the spirit of the faithful cucco kindly, offering her wing.

” _I... cannot,_ ” said the spirit of the cucco.

“ _You are very kind, but if I go with you, who would guard these precious eggs?_ ”

The spirit tried to persuade her, but it was no use.

The faithful cucco would not leave the children of her beloved egg.

The golden goddesses wept for the good and faithful cucco...

...and as The Death of Cucco stood again in the snowy field, shaking her head over the tragedy...

...a miracle occurred.

Golden tears fell from the sky...

...touching gently the snowy field and the snow-bound pumpkin shell...

...and the tuft of green tail-feathers that was all anyone but a spirit could see of the faithful cucco.

The creatures of field and forest came to watch the shining rain...

...and marvel at the beauty wrought by the good goddesses.

And as they watched...

... _another_ miracle happened.

A green sprout curled up from the snow...

...its tiny leaves unfurled...

...two leaves, then five, then seven...

...and the sprout curled and strove, until it was too tall to hold itself up...

...and still it grew, adding more leaves, and more after that...

...and the leaves that had come before grew darker, and shimmered like cucco feathers, deep and dark and made for hiding...

...except against the pure white snow.

The sprout grew into a vine...

...grew into a thicket...

...and every creature in the land came to marvel at it.

Grass-eaters-and flower-eaters and meat-eaters and death-eaters all came to witness the miracle...

...joined together in peace and wonder...

Even the Featherless.

As they watched, the blessed vines grew buds...

...and the buds grew into flowers.

Every petal was golden and shining and luscious...

...and even the meat-eaters drooled to think of how delicious the nectar must be.

A fox enchanted by the three-petalled golden blooms tried to steal one...

...but the other creatures cried out and startled them before their teeth could close.

The fox tucked their tail in shame, and turned to leave...

...but the wise owl settled on a branch above them...

...and told the fox of the lonely cucco...

...who was lost in this very field.

As the owl spoke, the blossoms spread wide, wider...

...too wide...

...for even blessed flowers wilt as all flowers must...

...but where the flowers fell away, golden seeds emerged...

...each shining seed grew in the shape of a teardrop...

...large, larger...

...too large-!

A seed cracked.

The creatures gathered to watch the crack spread...

...pop, snap, crack, wider and wider.

And from that crack, from that golden teardrop shell of the blessed seed of the blessed plant...

...emerged a fuzzy golden chick.

Everyone gasped in wonder.

"Peep," agreed the chick.

Another egg-seed cracked...

...and another, and another...

A blue chick and a purple chick...

...a pink chick and an orange chick...

...dozens, hundreds of tiny puffs of feather and beak emerged into the winter morning...

...greeting the whole world with a chorus of sweet little peeps and chirps.

The Featherless gathered up the rainbow-feathered chicks...

...and promised to love and keep them well...

...as faithfully as the brave, lonely cucco...

...who watched the whole miracle become alongside The Death of Cucco...

...sitting together on a golden pumpkin in the golden morning.

And _that_ is why cucco of farm and forest wear different colors.


	19. 12:g : Exalted the Sun and Exalted the Moon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fragmentary at the moment.

Once upon a time, in the place where the rivers dance like the moon, in the place that holds the bones of the foolish serpent who tried to eat the sun, there rose a Great King. Hideous, greedy demons beset the People day and night, north and south, east and west, for they wanted nothing better than to hurt whatever was beautiful and destroy whatever they couldn’t have. 

But though the Great King was not a warrior, he was clever. With his right hand he lifted among the People a champion in golden armor and forged for her a vast golden sword.

No warrior in the world could defeat her, and only one could match her.

Her name was Moon, and she stood at the left hand of the Great King. She wore armor of spotless silver and her great silver axe was a glory to behold…


	20. 12.h : The Cucco Who Tried to Hatch a Pumpkin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Revised and printed as part of _Natural Fables,_ an anthology of illustrated anthropomorphic wondertales, on the orders of Harkinian IV. The collection was part of a suite of books for children and tradesfolk sponsored by the crown in an effort to promote literacy - and the use of the new style of printing press, which allowed for faster, cheaper production of text and single-color engravings.

Once upon a time tomorrow, there was a cucco who lost all her eggs. Try as she might to lay more, and sometimes she even thought she had, but they always vanished by morning. All the other cucco had a chick to follow them around, but not her. 

One night she couldn’t bear to go into the coop, and fled to the field to hide instead. Soon enough she was lost, and sat under a tree to feel sorry for herself. 

_"Who disturbs my rest?"_ Asked the owl in the tree. 

"I didn’t know anyone lived here. I only sat to rest a moment and cry, because I am alone."

_Everyone is alone, silly cucco,"_ said the owl. _"What use is it feeling sad about it? Who are you to argue with the design of the gods?"_

The cucco became angry. She flew at the owl and beat him about the head saying: _"Who are you to speak for the gods? For all you know it could be their will that I have left the safety of the coop to seek my egg. I will find it, and it will be the best egg that ever was."_

So and so, the cucco left the trees and came to a strange new field full of vines and leaves as big as she was. She was afraid, but she continued on, thinking of the egg out there waiting for her.

And on the morning of the fourth day, an amazing thing happened. Under the shadow of a leaf, she found the most wonderful egg ever seen. Big and round and richly colored, and all alone. Just like her. 

She loved her egg at once, even though it was bigger than any egg she’d ever dreamed of, and had strange grooves and speckles unlike anything she’d ever seen before. She brushed the frost from its bright shell and tucked it under her heart to keep it warm. 

But - the giant orange egg would not hatch.

The year grew ever colder, and soon the cucco had eaten everything there was to eat near her beloved egg. But she couldn’t bear to leave it, when it was getting bigger and brighter and shinier every day.

Creatures of wind and field and forest came through her field and urged her to come away with them to fields of never ending grain before the season of hunger laid its sharp teeth upon the land. 

The cucco refused.

Foxes and wolves and crows came as the vines and leaves turned yellow and then brown, and shriveled away from the cucco and her enormous egg. They too said she was foolish, and urged her to come down from her perch and come away with them to be warm. 

The cucco looked at long fur - and their sharp teeth...

...and refused to give up.

When they left, she nudged the bright squeaky shell of her egg with her beak and whispered: _"I will stay with you, darling egg, always and forever."_

But all the wishing in the world cannot stop the winter winds.

The day came at last, when the grass was all cut, and the morning shone over the frozen stubble like broken glass, that the cucco saw a crack in her beloved egg. She cheered and begged and fretted over it, watching eagerly for another.

Slowly but surely, the crack spread - and so did the black spots.

One morning, when she was sure she could bear to wait another day for her long-awaited companion to hatch, a great crack of thunder split open the sky, and lightning struck the field.

The field mice and rabbits fled from the wall of flame, urging the cucco to come away with them to be safe.

But she could not leave with them. Her beloved egg had split open at last...

...and no companion came out of it. 

The owl circled over her, as she sat beside the broken shell, nudging the golden seeds that were all that were left of her enormous orange egg. 

_”Do not sorrow!”_ , he cried. _“Take up those seeds to eat and fly away with me, cucco. I know the way to your home, and it is surely the hand of the gods that I happened to fly this way.”_

But the cucco ignored him.

She dug in the dirt, pushing and straining to turn the broken shell of her egg upside down. 

The wildfire came so close her tail feathers singed and smoked, but she would not give up. She crawled under the shelter of the heavy, black-spotted shell ...

...she scraped together all the odd little golden teardrop eggs into a pile, and tucked them under her heart to stay warm.

”Worry not, my darling,” she said to the spirit of her lost egg as she drifted to sleep, exhausted by her efforts. _“The gods may have taken you, but I will love your children in your stead, and they will be the best chicks that ever were.”_

By and by, the fire burned out, as fires often do, and the Death of Cucco came to the burned field with the first snow. _“It is time to go home,”_ she said kindly, offering her wing.

_”I... cannot,”_ said the spirit of the cucco. _“You are very kind, but if I go with you, who would guard these precious eggs?”_

The spirit tried to persuade her, but it was no use. The cucco would not leave. Her form changed and her spirit became a shadow, and still, she remained, even into the longest night.

And yet the eggs did not hatch.

And so it is with all divine truths: you cannot change the nature of things by wishing.


	21. 12.i : The Age of Destiny

Long ago tomorrow, in the place where the gods dream, there will live a beautiful princess. Good and Kind and Wise, even when she will be little. Everything she dreams comes true, but one day, there is a bad dream. A great black storm comes from the west, swallowing everything green and good, the castle in ruins, the rivers dry, the great mountain overflowing with fire. No one important will listen to this dream, not even the King.

The princess walks in her garden, trying to solve the dreaming, for she dreams the storm again and again, but still no one will listen. Through the window she sees a stranger come to bow before the King, but his heart does not bow with him. He sees her through the window, and she understands - he is the storm…

— o - O - o —

Long ago tomorrow, death will come to the deathless place. The guardian becomes sadness, and sent the spirit treasure to the King, so he would know what happens. But the King will not hear the forest any more than he heard the princess.

The wise princess will send warnings in secret to the mountains and to the river, but the stranger had been there first. He refused to make bad things stop unless they gave him their spirit treasure, and the guardians did not trust him. They will send their treasures to the wise princess instead, but a great storm comes, with bad magic in it.

The stranger made himself King, and for seven years, all was as the princess dreamed…

— o - O - o —

Long ago tomorrow, in the time of the great storm, the wise princess will travel in secret, braving the madness of endarkened guardians in search of the legendary six sages. She endured seven years of trial alone, until the gate of the gods' broken dreaming will be open again.

The spirits of the six lost sages will be gathered to unmake the storm, and the magic of the great fairies returned the land to the keeping of the wise princess. But the darkness did not lift with the death of the usurper King, or the great beast which will come after.

The princess used the place of the gods' dreaming to unravel the years, and return all things to how they were before the storm. But death will hold the deathless guardians, as the gods' dreaming held the lost-and-found sages, and the great fairies hide, as they once did in the long ago tomorrow, when the bad magic was beginning…

— o - O - o —

Long ago tomorrow when the moon would fall, the hurting one stole a precious thing. With beauty they will make sadness, with joy they make crookedness, with truth they made sorrows.

People will become angry where they had loved, and bad things filled every tomorrow, and every tomorrow after that, until the end of everything.

The tomorrow magic was sung, and still the hurting one danced pain.

The sun was sung dancing, and everything will be the same. The skin of the lost one becomes the stranger, and everyone forgets.

In the long ago tomorrows of deathless dreaming, even the moon would fall at the end, and the end, and the end.


	22. 12.j : The Song of Goldtusk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As sung by Fishnet, a humble guard of the desert 'blin.

Long after the Shard War and the Witch War were forgotten by pale humans, the Great Ganondorf was born to the golden desert women. The sun whose light you revere, the wind whose sweetness you praise, these meant madness and suffering for our people and his. He trained long, singing many songs, dancing many flowers, and reading many books. He became the strongest of Rova ever known, and when the golden women named him prince, the chiefs of the desert clans and the highland clans went to see whether the winds sang war or plenty. He bargained with the chiefs, and conquered many feats of strength and cunning, and made oath-charms to mark the treaties. Clans came from far away to see this prince who grew into a man, and a king, and a Great King, the Lord of Thunder, the Sun’s Ray made flesh.

But the King was not content to build oasis and raid the edges of softland kingdoms. When he was young, Hyrule was at war inside herself. The waterfolk and stonefolk were at war over land. The woods folk and the plains folk were at war over land. The human and the blin were at war over land. Everywhere, war, and no one winning but Death Herself.

But the Great Ganondorf is not only king - he is a Great King, blessed of gods and demons both. He saw a road to victory, and by strength and cunning, _he_ would build it, and lead us all to wealth and plenty.

The woods people wanted the Hyrule to stay neutral. The lake humans wanted to take the side of stone, because the water people kept them from using the lake as they liked. The mountain humans wanted the Hyrule to take the side of water, because their stone-folk neighbors interfered with their mining. The Hyrule would not hear the golden women, so the King took the words of his people and ours and went to the softland to be heard by the Hyrule - and there came to love the Windblade, though they were night and day, blushing spring and burning summer.

The King raised war banner and gave many warriors to the Hyrule, many shinies and feasting and weapons to the Windblade as courting gifts - but the tongue of the Windblade was false, and her kiss poison. The softland took the gifts of the king but still called us monster, called the golden women bandit, and he who led us all: Demon Thief.

Greater gifts, much and much, one after another, victories laid before the Hyrule who did not listen and the Windblade who would betray him. Ten years he sought her hand, and the day the Great Peace was to begin - she says yes. Now it is victory-feast _and_ bride-feast. All rejoicing. Every fire among every people, there is singing.

But - in the dancing steel flashes - the Great Ganondorf vanished. We follow the blood - they take him to his rooms and there try to slay him, but he is strong. We follow the blood - they take him away from the castles and towns. We follow the blood and we follow the oath charms - and they take him to the Place of Atrocities.

We rode to free him, but the softlanders slew his best generals, and it was too long taking the Atrocity-Place. It was seen by the Goldtusk from the wall as battle raged to take the Atrocity place that even in chains he worked a great magic. The mark of the Great Three blessed him, and it would have been glory - but the softland elders opened the Witch Mirror as he seized the soulblade - they cast him into the Dark Stone, and broke the mirror to seal him there.

We hold the Atrocity-Place many generations, but the song of the Goldtusk who saw him bleed on the Altar of Atrocities is sung at the fire, and we wait. We know he lives, because the oath-charms he gave to the chiefs as a sign of the bargains remain strong, cycle after cycle. We wait. We wait. The twilight plague drives the north clans from home, drives the east clans, the greenfield clans, all. They shelter with us at the Atrocity camps. To wait.

Traitor chiefs argue with the elders, and say the Goldtusk was wrong, the oath-charms are false, they leave to fight for the mask-changer. Even King Bulblin, the greatest of chiefs, begins to listen to the winds. The mask-changer is coming, is winning, no one lives in our time who is stronger. What can it hurt to stand with him and feast, until the Great King returns?

And then. I, lowly Fishnet, not even third cousin to any of the line of Goldtusk, no great warrior anywhere in the tomb of my ancestors, I stand by the Atrocity Gate - _and the shadows move_. The Great Ganondorf returns in glory, bearing his battle wound with pride, and the sword of his enemy.

The time of waiting is over. We raise the banner.

We follow the King of Light and Shadow, the Great Ganondorf, he who is chosen of the gods, as our elders did before us, and their elders before them.


	24. 12.k : A Wise and Wicked Prince

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which we tell the tale of how the Lady Marin was beloved of both the Wretched Prince Bertrand and Good Prince Gustav, and gave birth anon to Zelda the Great.

Long ago yesterday, and maybe again tomorrow, there were two strong sons born into the royal house. They were given the best of everything there was: the masters of every discipline and sacred mysteries were summoned to the castle to be their teachers; they ate the best food; they wore the most beautiful clothes; and their parents loved them very much.

As time passed, one became wise, and the other became wicked. Prince Bertrand hid his wickedness from everyone so well that everyone said they were alike as two sides of the same sword, and indeed, they did love one another well and do everything together. By the grace of the Lady of Light the wise Prince Gustav saw the darkness in his brother’s heart, but loved him too well to believe in it.

The time came the princes were old enough to marry, and the wise prince stood aside to let his brother seek firstly, for he hoped a good match would lift his twin into the Light once more. The wicked Bertrand chose the Lady Marin, for she was the most beautiful of all. She believed his false promises, and accepted his suit. They wed, and by and by she went away to his own castle in the north to live with him, for she was both young and kind.

The wise Gustav remained with the King and Queen and on the strength of his deeds the people began to say he would be a good King when the time came for his father to set aside the crown. This made the wicked prince angry, and though he had every good thing and a beautiful, virtuous wife, and three strong children besides, he was jealous, for he wanted to be the most powerful of all.

The wicked Prince Bertrand devised a scheme, taking his whole family and all his servants, and knights, and their servants with him to the capital to celebrate the birthday of the wise prince, which was also his own. The King and Queen embraced their son and the Lady Marin and all their children, and showered them with love, for they were blessed by the Lady of Light to be good and kind in all things. Prince Gustav wisely held back, for the Lady of Light had sent him dreams of a mortal fight with his twin, wherein he would take a grievous wound. He saw in his brother’s eyes the truth of his heart, but still he loved too well to speak of this to anyone.

The Lady Marin understood his sorrow, but she had learned to be afraid of her husband’s anger. She persuaded Prince Gustav embrace his wicked brother, and prayed to the Lady of Light for peace between them. The ways of the gods are often mysterious to mortals, and the wise prince realized in that moment that his heart yearned for Lady Marin. He prayed for the Light to take away his longing, but instead it multiplied. So great was his struggle that he forgot his duties and turned away from his family and everything he loved best.

On the night before the birthday feast, Lady Marin was seized with a great and terrible feeling of doom. She went to Prince Bertrand and begged her lord husband to leave the capital that very night. He saw the true nature of her compassion for the wise prince, and in fury bore her away to his own castle in the darkness.

Prince Bertrand summoned all his barons, and dukes, and counts, and knights, and squires, and even the peasants in the field, ordering them to make ready for war against his brother. He locked the Lady Marin in the highest tower, and strung the key around his own neck so no one could even see her but himself. He told everyone a great lie, that the Good Prince Gustav, beloved of everyone and hailed for his virtue and benevolence, was in truth wretchedly evil, that in sorrow he must tell the world his own brother had tried to dishonor Lady Marin, and soon the whole country turned one against the other, depending which brother they loved best.

The wise Prince Gustav made a shield of his sorrow and a sword of his rage, and set out for the north with his most trusted knights to free the Lady Marin and restore peace to the realm. Together they laid siege to the castle of the wicked prince, and for eight days and seven nights the battle raged fearsomely.

But on the eighth night, the wise prince saw how his loyal knights had been greatly wounded, and how the castle of his brother remained strong, so he left his army and went to shrine in the woods to pray. By and by, while the wise prince knelt before the gods, a powerful sheikah came to the very same shrine. She knew him for a son of the royal house at once, so she disguised herself as an old beggar woman, to test him.

The good Prince Gustav at once gave her his cloak to keep warm, and his golden earrings to sell since he had no food with him, and when she asked what he prayed for, he told her the truth. The sheikah knew how the Lady Marin had suffered at the hands of the wicked Prince Bertrand, and so she said to his twin that she would help him gain everything he ever wished for if he would promise to give her the care and keeping of his firstborn, for she had never been able to bear children of her own. He understood this as a sign at once, and agreed.

The wise prince returned to the battlefield and called out to his brother, hurling the foulest names at him. He swore before the gods that unless he was the lowest coward, he should answer the challenge himself. That he should come down to the field before their assembled knights and settle their quarrel forever.

Bertrand heard this with a terrible gladness, for he saw a chance to take the throne for himself alone. He led his closest knights onto the field, swearing them to cause a disturbance while he dueled his twin, and in the chaos, they should rush in to ensure his brother’s swift end. Although he was wicked and lusted for power and glory in all ways, and had often wished the gods to take Gustav away so he could have his brother's portion without the ugly necessity of fratricide, he truly wished no pain on his beloved brother.

It happened that the brothers did battle from dawn to twilight, and when the darkness fell at last they were both deeply wounded. In the darkness, even their own knights could barely tell them apart. The secret magic of the sheikah touched the battlefield, and made certain the knights would each carry away the wrong prince.

Gustav roused in his brother’s rooms and understood at once what the sheikah had done. He spoke softly to his brother’s best knight, making use of the enchantment to ask that Princess Marin be brought to comfort him in his dying hour. The knight believed he spoke to his own prince, and felt great joy that his heart had softened. He asked leave to take the key to the tower and release the Lady Marin.

When the disguised prince confessed he’d lost the key in the dread battle, the knight understood his lord lay on the brink of death - for he saw the tower key hung around the prince’s neck exactly as he expected. The sheikah enchantment was so complete that Gustav carried a conjured key exactly like the one his twin wore. So and so, the knights brought Marin to his side and marveled at the gentleness of their lord on his deathbed.

Meanwhile, the knights sworn to Prince Gustav discovered they had the wicked Bertrand in their power, for he did not have an enchantment to mask him once they washed away the blood of battle. Together they drew their swords and pierced him at the same moment, so no one afterward could say who slew him.

The enchantment lasted three nights, and in the third morning it faded full away. Prince Gustav escaped the castle while Lady Marin slept, covering his armor with a vast cloak. He wept when he discovered his brother slain, and laid him out in honor before the castle gate. When the friends and knights of the wicked prince saw what had become, they knew they were defeated. They cast down their weapons and threw themselves on the mercy of the wise prince.

The wise prince spared their lives but took away their titles, lifting up peasants from the field to take the place of the lords, and squires to be knights, bidding them hereafter to live virtuous lives.

Lady Marin came down from the castle to see her husband buried, and even to weep for him a little. Wise Prince Gustav spoke with her, and offered her Bertrand's castle and all his lands. She asked him boldly why he should go to war with his brother only to give away his prizes. So the wise prince confessed his concern for her, and told her some little stories of his brother’s wickedness. Lady Marin heard all of this with troubled heart, for though her marriage had not been happy, she loved her children very much, and she treasured her last nights with the wicked prince.

So and so, she stayed in the north castle with her children and her strange grief until the year came around again. The wise and kind Prince Gustav sent presents of good food, and fine clothes, and toys for the children on every holiday, and prepared gifts even more grand to be sent to them on his birthday.

The Lady Marin surprised him by bringing her family and all her household to the capital instead. Again the wise prince felt a great longing for her, and went to her in secret to see the truth of her heart. Prince Gustav forgot his resolve when he saw her radiance, falling on his knees and asked that she wed him and become his queen.

Lady Marin did not answer at once, but let fall her velvet cloak. To his wonder he discovered her belly had grown moon-round, and he kissed her most tenderly. He did not ask her to explain her condition, but only renewed his petition that the Lady Marin share in his life and every good thing. So moved was she by his compassion for the widow and children of his wicked brother, she agreed.

She began to have birth pains that very week, though she hid her condition from all the world but for the wise prince and her closest servants. They wed in the Temple of Light on Prince Gustav's birthday, and all the realm rejoiced for peace restored. The good King abdicated his crown on that very day, raising Gustav the Good into his place, that he might enjoy his twilight years doting on the Queen Mother and the many royal grandchildren.

Queen Marin found great joy with the King Gustav the Good, but in little moments and in the small hours when voices of doubt come to everyone, she worried.

One night Gustav urged her to confess, and held her close as she told him how she lay with the wicked prince when he was dying. She made him promise not to punish the child for the sins of its father, and marveled when he swore it easily. He confessed to her how the sheikah had worked a great enchantment to bring a swift end to the brothers’ war. He assured her he had not the slightest idea beforehand how it would be accomplished, but agreed to carry the enchanted crystal in good faith, for the sheikah in that time were understood to be most devout of the Light, and Hylia the Bright most especially.

Gustav told her of his surprise to find the magic carry him into his brother’s place when he was wounded on the field, and how the longing of his heart stopped his tongue when Lady Marin too believed the glamour. He begged her forgiveness for his deception, and for his rash promise to the old sheikah woman, but the Queen was untroubled by this. She said she could think of no better nurse, tutor, nor guardian for her child than the sheikah woman who had made life in the north a thousand times easier than it could have been without her.

And so and so.

The Queen kept her child secret, and on the day she began to labor in earnest, the sheikah came to the capital dressed in all honors, and before the whole court she asked the wise prince if he would keep his word. He took her to the Queen’s chambers and when the child was born, they embraced her and wrapped her in the softest blankets of royal purple, and gave her over to the keeping of the sheikah.

The sheikah looked on the little princess, and saw her heart and her while future laid out, and so touched her brow and gave her the name Zelda.


	25. 13.a : Selected Royal Correspondence : On Power

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Editor's Note:
> 
> This letter is of particular interest, as it is the final 'letter' written in the distinctive voice scholars refer to as "The Prince."
> 
> Fragmentary notes have surfaced over the centuries, which may represent discarded drafts, but Windblade seems to have lost interest in developing this line of reasoning any further. Some scholars suggest that the real-life model for the Prince may have died shortly after this passage was drafted, but as Windblade succeeded Harkinian Johannes shortly after the disastrous events of the Winter Peace, and did not resume work on her Discourses until the second decade of her reign, it is just as likely that once she took the throne, she simply lost interest in pursuing this irreverent and rebellious line of reasoning.
> 
> The redacted names do not reflect editorial censorship on the part of the archivists or publishers, but rather was standard practice in the era to discretely obscure the identities of correspondents for any letter presented in a text, whether fact or fiction. It was considered beyond rude, to the point of causing more than one feud to read another's private correspondence. Even in cases where the contents of a letter might be read aloud to entertain friends or family, it was read by the recipient of the letter alone, allowing for any necessary elisions to protect the reputations of the principals, and the names redacted as in printed copies. 
> 
> In actual personal letters and memoirs, it was assumed any proper audience should already be acquainted with the writer and therefore able to easily recognize the obscured persons, and in the case of fiction, to include an explicit name in a 'letter' would have felt unwontedly shocking and intimate to a contemporary reader. It is relatively safe to assume that in this case, the 'Prince' addresses Windblade herself, and the House referenced is the House of Red Lions. From the context of the letter, the salutation of "Dear", the abrupt opening and closure, and the abbreviating of "With Regards", we are to infer a significant degree of intimacy between the correspondents. Even accounting for the characteristically bold voice of the Prince, for any more casual connection this would have been perceived as a deep insult.
> 
> It is theorized that the proposed alliance which was frequently alluded to may have included within its terms a state marriage, perhaps not too dissimilar from the fragmentary contracts which survived Windblade's reign regarding her consort, the poorly-documented Vah Niju Erech Eliosus.

Dear ——–,   
I will not waste your time or mine on those flowery professions of courtesy your court indulges. The prime argument in your last letter is impressive for its spirit, but is in nearly every point wrong.

Of course power is both terrible and dangerous. That is the material point. Nor is it tame. To harness power, you must first possess it. In order to possess it you must first embody it. Nor can you afford to indulge debate in this: without it, you will fall. The question of when remains open, but irrelevant, for the end is certain so long as you continue in this misbegotten habit.

The tutors responsible for planting such ridiculous ideas in your head deserve an intimate acquaintance with the barbaric horsewhip your people employ.

Even in the miraculous event that you should draft a law which is in every respect morally perfect, your work will be in vain so long as you lack the energy and conviction to enforce it. You can toil for generations to lift individual souls into harmony with your law, and still those with the power to follow their own interests where they diverge from law will do so.

Power answers to power. If you would shape the world to your desire, you must first acquire the power to do so, and the courage to wield it. So long as you indulge these weak, sentimental notions of the supreme virtue of life without respect to its qualities or purpose, power will never answer to you.

Your analogy with regard to a blooded sword is correct, but insufficient. It does not follow that because blades are by design instruments of death that they must therefore bathe in blood. Ask the head of your guard the fate of a sword thus handled - if they do not answer that it rusts away to nothing, end them at once with the one they bear.

Conflict is both inevitable and necessary - war is but a dramatic manifestation of this principle where one or more sides cannot or will not yield. If you truly wish to avoid applying the sword for its final purpose, you will hone both blade and arm to fearsome degree.

Taking law and upright conduct as your sole weapon for the sake of tradition is admirable only for its patriotism. You are already familiar with my opinion on that point. To engage battle half-armed is foolish. To engage war thus is the height of treason. Make no mistake, ——– if the House of ——— continues to reject this truth out of misplaced notions of moral superiority, it will fall. Place the blame for the disaster, if the word will permit such abuse, upon the heads most responsible for its cause. Do not condemn the blade, but the weak heart which refuses to draw it.

I will not shrink from necessity - but nor will I waste life and effort where a better path lays ready. You need this alliance.

Wit.Rgs-


	26. 12.l : The Lady of Flowers and the Green Knight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An abbreviated excerpt from the Legends of Zelda The Great

Long ago, but perhaps tomorrow, there was a wise and brave warrior who was disinherited by his village. When he was small, he seemed to be like them, but as time raises the seed to a sprout and the sprout to a sapling, so he also grew and changed. They argued with one another in secret, until the weight of their worries tipped the scale of neceassity beyond all doubt, and they sent him away. He was not like them, and the good things he did seemed evil to them, because they did not understand what he did, or why he did it.

He wandered the wide world, and came upon a city built all of white stone so it shone like the moon herself. It was both beautiful and vast, for so the Bright Lady who led them willed it to be. She was good and kind and wise, and she saw at once the warrior who wore green was made for a grand destiny, and the whole future of her people would depend on him.

Alas - the people were not ready to believe, so she devised many challenges and puzzles for him to prove to them his strength and cleverness. In return he challenged her warriors also. In time, many came to see that he was the greatest of them.

Even so, they were afraid, for like his village, they did not have the understanding to see the virtue in his actions. Those who were jealous took him away and hurt him, and greviously did he bleed, but he did _not_ die, not yet, though it was a very near thing.

The Bright Lady heard of what her people had done, and though she spoke against it, they would not listen. She hid her light under a vast cloak and went to free him in secret. She saw how bravely he bore his hurts, and she was amazed by the gentle summer warmth of his heart, where many others would have become cold as stone.

The Lady of Flowers took the heroic youth away from her beloved city, and as she healed his hurts, the seed of wonder and respect in her heart flowered into love for the Green Knight. They promised to one another under the light of the stars, and they promised also to the gods to unite their lands and peoples so that their children after them would learn to understand one another, and not suffer as they had.

The boy who would become the Green Knight left his home in sorrow, but though he began alone, he had many grand adventures, and in time became a great hero, renowned for his valiant deeds long after he returned to stardust.

Some say his fate was wondrous because the Lady of Flowers willed it so, and others that his stars were fixed long before his birth, and still others say that the gods had portioned him for strife and misery, but the Golden Ones were so struck by the power of love reflected and magnified in its ceaseless return that their divine tears moved the very heavens to allow their happiness to flourish.


End file.
